Head-gear.



G. L. CLOSE.

um sra/m. APPLICATION FILED DC.2B. ISL1- p. Patented Nov. 12, 19H8.

2 SHEETS-SPEELT l.

G. L. CLSE,

HEAD GEAR.

APPLICATmN FILED Dsc. 29, 1911.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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Patented Nov. 12, 1918.

ira smrns PATENT onirica'.

GE'oRGE-L.feriosn'uorivronnr vennen-NEW YORK, AssIGrNon lro cHUEoH,'WE-BB an onosnendfoF-ENEWYom/QN. Y., A ooRPoRATIoN-oF-NEW YORK.

"HEAD-GEAR.

To all ihm z't'meyconcern:

Be it known'that I,GERGE'L. CLosE,a citizen of the United States, yand :resident of `MountVernon,` yin .X the county of Vestchester and State of New York, have invented 'certain new :and useful Improvements in .Head-Gear, of"`which the .following isa speciiication.

This invention relates more particularly to head gear designed for the use of aviators and vthe principal' object of the invention is to provider a helmet or hood with a cape extensions@ that the head and neck and `a part of the shouldersV of the wearer will be'protected, the cape ybeing divided from-theface opening ofthe hood tothe lower margin of the cape and provided with means for readily closing it and lookingit closed.

Another-object of the invention is to provideV the head-'gear with -a flexible, waterproof, non-absorbent exterior and a soft, fleecy interior.

` There are other `objectSa-nd advantages of the invention which will appear herein-- after, resul-ting from the' detailed construction. and designof the head-gear.

In the drawingsfFigure l is a perspective viewof Vthe head-gear openV and in condition tofbe applied; p

`FigmQ a-face'view of-the helmetas it iswhen applied g y `F ig. 3 a horiontalsect'ional view on the line III-III" of" Fig..y l;

Fig 4e' a similarmview showing the iiap which 'is designed to cover the ear opening, rolled up and secured in its rolled condition;

Fig. 5 a detail enlarged view of the sliding means for interlocking the margins of the dividedV portion of the cape; f

Fig. 6' 'fanyenlarged detail View of one of the interlockingfmetal studs of the closure device; and y y Fig. '7 a detail perspective view ofthe slide adapted to bring into interlocking engagement the studs of the closure'means.

`Referring vto the various parts by numerals, Y1idesignates the helmet or-hood which is formed with the face OpeningQ; and from the lower `end of the helmet the shoulder ,cape 3 "extends, `The loweredge of the cape Speeicationef Letters Patent.

Patented NOV. 12, 1918.

K Application sied December 29, 1917. serial No. 209,468.

is continuous and unbroken, themarginal seam 4 .extending entirelyaround thesaid lower edge. The'cape-Y isdivided vertically as at 5 from the-chin portion of the'face opening to the marginal .seat l, said seam being reinforced across the opening by' a Ystrip 6 which bridges the opening at the said seam 4. Themarginal edges of the opening 5 are provided with oppositelyarranged interlocking metal studs 7,. shown clearly in Fig. 5, each marginal. edge ofV saidY opening being provided with a series-ofsuch. studs which are in staggered relation, the studs on one margin of thesaid opening being adapted to engage corresponding vstuds on the opposite margin thereof. `These metal studs, asshown in Fig.Y 5, are provided-'on their upper surfaces with projections and on their under surfaces with sockets, said sockets being adapted to: receive the .projectionsof the' adjoining engaging.. studs of the opposite margin. These .studs are brought into interlocking engagement by means of a. Y-shaped'hollow slide 8. To bring the two sets of studs into interlocking engagement Ytheslide is fdrawn upwardly to the chin' opening. V-henthe studsare interlocked the two margins ofthe opening 5 Vare closely connected, the `connection. -resembling metal stitching and .securing a very ,tight closure. This yclosure meansfis an article of-commerce and forrnsno part of my invention'except in its application. To close the opening itis merely necessary to draw the slide- 8 upwardly to the margin of the face opening. The separate the margins of the Vopenings. it is only necessary .to pull the said margins'outwardly away from eachother, beginning at thek upper ends thereof, the'slide being moved downwardly toV the .reinforcing-piece 6 by the outward motion 0iV the cape sections. Secured tothe inner side of the cape along one of the-margins of the-opening V5,.lisp--af'bridgeupiece 9, said bridge pieceY extending for a@ considerable distance across the opening 5.and serving as a `windbreak. The upperendofthis bride piece is,` extended above then lower margin-.ofthe -fa'ce open-ing 2V .and is-linedY on its inner` side with Heeey vmater-iaiu 10. This upper end of the bridge piecels provided with members 11 of two snap fasteners, the cooperating members 12 of said snap fasteners being secured to the cape portion on opposite sides of the opening 5 as Shown clearly in Fig. 1. When the slide 8 has been moved upwardly to close the opening 5 the upper end of the bridge piece is turned outwardly and downwardly to bring the members 11 of the snap fasteners into en-l gagement with the members l2 thereof to thereby lock the upper margins of the opening 5 together and to prevent the separation of said margins by any outward pull on the cape sections. The outwardly turned or folded end of the bridge piece covers the slide 8 and prevents it contacting with the chin of the wearer. It is manifest that that portion of the bridge piece which is within the cape bridges the joint between the margins of the opening 5 and eifectually prevents the inward passage of wind. The sections of the cape cannot be separated without iirst releasing the overlapping and locking portion of the bridge piece. To open the cape it is necessary to rst release the locking portion of the bridge and to then pull outwardly the upper ends of the marginal portions of the opening 5. This provides for a very ready removal of the headgear from the wearer. It is well known that aviators become very cold in high altitudes and it is very desirable that their head-gear be so designed that it may be readily land quickly removed even though the hands of the wearer are very cold and stiff.

` The helmet or hood 1, at points which are approximately opposite the ears of the wearer, are provided with apertures 13 shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1 and shown clearly in Figs. 3 and 4. Secured to the exterior of the hood are flexible flaps 14, said flaps on their inner sides carrying members 15 of snap fasteners, the other members 16 thereof being secured to the hood in such position as to be engaged by the members 15 when the flaps 14 are extended and overlie the openings 13. This is the position of the flaps when the hood is in use and it is desired to cover the openings 13V to prevent wind entering them. The flaps 14 on their exterior carry members 17 of snap fasteners, the other members 18 thereof being connected to the hood close to the point of connection between the flap 14 and the hood. When the iiaps 14 are not extended over the ear openings they are rolled up and the members 17 are snapped into the coperating members 18 in order to secure the flaps to the side of the hood in the form of a roll 19, as indicated in Fig. 4, thereby leaving the ear openings free for the purpose of ventilation and also to enable the wearer to hear readily.

Detachably secured to the lower end of the hood, by means of a snapfastener 20, is a chin-protecting strap 21, said strap being lined on its inner side with suitable iieecy material, said material being carried around on the outer face of the chin strap as clearly illustrated in the drawing. Connected to one end of the said chin strap is a strap 22 on which is mounted a slide 23 which carries one member 24 of a snap fastener, the other member thereof being secured to the hood in a position directly opposite the fastener 20. By means of the slide 23 and the strap 22 the 'chin strap may be lengthened or shortened in order to t the wearer. It is manifest that by reason of the use of the snap fastener 20 the chin strap may be entirely detached from the hood if desired. In removing J:he head-gear from the wearer it is only necessary to detach one end of the chin strap, as indicated in Fig. 1.

The exterior of the hood and cape is preferably of a soft, exible, non-absorbent, waterproof material in order that it will dry quickly and also prevent the inner fleecy lining from absorbing moisture from the exterior covering. I prefer to use a soft, woven, rubberized fabric of suitable thickness and strength.

' The exterior of the cape and' hood is formed of sections of material which extend from the top of the hood to the lower margin of the cape so that the exterior seams are all vertical, thereby facilitating the downward discharge of moisture which may collect thereon and .preventing said moisture -lodging in the seams and seeping through into the fleecy inner lining. The exterior of the hood and cape is preferably formed of four sections,-two side sections 25 and a rear section 26, all of which extend from the top of the hood to the lower margin 4 of the cape; and a front section 27 which ex tends from the crown of the cape to the upper margin of the face opening. It is to be noted that all of the seams connecting these sections are substantially vertical.

It is well known that aviators have great difiiculty in retaining their helmets when traveling at high speed, dueto the wind pressure. It is obvious that with an integral capev which is adapted to be placed under the coat, the helmet or hood is effectually secured in position and cannot be torn oli'l by the high winds. It is also obvious that the locking piece bridging the Joint between the two cape sections and preventing the release of the locking device will also be effective in preventing the cape being opened by the high winds.

What I claim is:

l. A hood comprising a crown port-ion and a cape portion connected by an intermediate contracted portion, said hoodvbeing formed with a face opening and'having the cape portionthereof divided from the lower edge of the face opening `to a point adjacent the lower margin of thev cape portion to form a slit to permit expansion of the contracted portion of the hood, interlocking closure devices heldto the cape portion at opposite sidesV of the slit'adapted to be separated by pulling sidewise on" the edges of the face opening, and means for detachably locking the sections of the divided cape portion together adjacent the upper end of the slit to prevent relative movement of the interlocking closure devices.

2. A hood formed with a face opening and a cape portion divided from the lower edge of the face opening to a. point adjacent the lower margin of the cape, interlocking closure devices secured to the edges of the sections of the divided cape portion, means shiftably held to the cape portion for moving said closure devices into interlocked relation, and means for locking the sections of the divided cape portion together adjacent the lower edge of the face opening to prevent accidental separation of the interlocked closure devices.

3. A head-gear for aviators and the-like comprising a hood, a cape at the lower end of said hood, said hood being formed with a face opening and the cape being divided from the margin of said tace opening to the lower margin-ol the cape and the lower margin of the cape being continuous, interlocking closure 'devices secured to the margins of the opening in the cape, a sliding means for bringing said devices into interlocking engagement, and means for locking together the upper ends of the cape sections at the face opening, said locking means covering the slide of the closure means.

4. A head-gear for aviators and the like comprising a hood, a cape at the lower end of said hood, said hood being formed with a face opening and the cape being divided from the margin of said face opening to the lower margin of the cape and the lower margin of the cape being continuous, interlocking closure devices secured to the margins of the opening in the cape, a sliding means for bringing said devices into interlocking engagement, a bridge piece secured along the inner surface of one margin of the cape opening and extending across said opening, the upper end of said bridge piece being adapted to be turned outwardly and downwardly, and snap fasteners carried by the end of said bridge piece and by the cape sections whereby said bridge piece may be secured to the cape sections to lock the up-V per ends of said sections together and inclose the slide of the closure means.

V5. A head-gear for aviators vand the like comprising a hood, a cape at the lower end of said hood, saidhood being formed with a face opening and the capo being vdivided -lfromthe margin of said face opening to the lower margin ofthe cape and the lower margin ofAv the cape-being continuous, interlocking closure devices secured to the margins of the openingl in the cape, Va Ysliding means for bringing said devices into interlocking engagement, a bridge piece secured along the inner surface of one margin of the cape opening and extending across said opening, the upper end of said bridge piece being adapted to be turned outwardly and downwardly, snap fasteners carried by the end of said bridge piece and by the cape sections whereby said bridge piece may be secured to the cape sections to lock the upper ends of said sections together and inclose the slide of the closure means, a chin strap, and means for detachably securing one end of said chin strap in position across the lower end ofthe face opening.

6. A hood formed with a face opening and a divided cape portion, interlocking devices held to the cape portion at opposite sides of the division line for separably connecting the edges of the cape portion together, a bridge piece adapted to cover the joint between the separably connected edges of the cape, and means whereby said bridge piece may be detachably secured to the cape portion at opposite sides of the division line to prevent separation of the interlocking devices.

7. A hood formed with a face opening and a divided cape portion, interlocking devices held to the cape portion at opposite sides of the division line for separably connecting the edges of the cape portion together` a bridge piece adapted to cover the joint between the separably connected edges of the cape, means whereby said bridge piece may be detachably secured to the cape portion at opposite sides of the division line to prevent separation of the interlocking devices, a chin protecting 'strap adapted to extend acrossV the lower portion of the face opening, and means for detachably securing the ends of the chin strap to the hood at opposite sides of the :tace opening.

8. A hood comprising a crown portion and a cape portion connected by an intermediate contracted portion, said hood being formed with a face opening and having the cape portion thereof divided from the lower edge of the face opening to apoint adjacent the lower margin of the cape portion to form a slit to permit expansion of the contracted portion of the hood, interlocking closure devices held to the cape portion at opposite sides of the slit adapted to be separated by pulling sidewise on the edges of the face opening, a bridge piece held to the cape portion adapted to'cover the joint between the separably connected edges of 5 the divided cape portion and formed With an extension at its upper end adapted to be folded over the lower edge of the face opening, and means forrdetacbably securing the folded end of said bridge piece to the' cape portion at opposite sides of the slit. 10

In testimony whereof I hereunto aiiix my signature.

GEORGE L. CLOSE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for :tive cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G. 

